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Ontario chips in for Playboy model in Parry Sound tourism campaign

A provincial marketing agency helped foot the bill for Leticia Cline’s role in a publicity tour near Parry Sound and an article titled “Beauty, Brains and Livin’ on the Edge.”

Leticia Cline, an American model flown to Parry Sound by Ontario's tourism marketing agency and private partners for a publicity campaign, posted this photo on Instagram with the government-sanctioned tag #edgyadventures. (Instagram)

The Ontario government’s tourism marketing agency paid for a Playboy model to help promote travel in the Parry Sound region as part of a provocatively framed publicity campaign.

Under the rubric #edgyadventures, which was used to label events on social media, American model Leticia Cline and professional Canadian motocross racer Ami Houde participated last week in a variety of outdoor activities to promote local tourism, hosted by snowcross professional Shelby Mahon. Activities included all-terrain vehicle and dirt bike riding, a spin on a hovercraft and a tour in a float plane.

Of the total cost, $1,650 was spent on transport for Cline, Houde and Mahon, as well as a freelance writer and two journalists from ATV.com, Hora said.

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In an interview Wednesday, OTMPC president and CEO Ronald Holgerson said Cline was chosen by Mahon as someone who would be less familiar with the extreme sports and environment of Northern Ontario, and her strong social media presence would help promote the region’s tourism.

“I’m concerned in the future we make sure we vet every participant,” said Holgerson, describing how the Playboy model was invited because she’s also an amateur motocross rider.

“I don’t think that person’s other life” — as a model — “was necessarily intended to be part of the story,” he said.

To promote the tour, an article titled “Beauty, Brains and Livin’ on the Edge: Special Guests Vow to Ride Parry Sound By Any Means,” was posted on a website administered by Tourism Northern Ontario, another publicly funded organization promoting travel in the province.

The article described Houde and Cline as “breathtaking beauties” who would deliver Parry Sound a “double dose of intoxication.”

“There’s something about a woman who rides, whether it be an ATV, a motorcycle, a float plane or a dirt bike,” the original article began. Referring to Cline, who has modelled for Playboy and Maxim Magazine, the article said: “If you’d like to look at her body of work, click here — but be forewarned, it just might move you to tears — Leticia (Cline) is a beauty beyond words, and you may need to take a moment to recover.”

Describing Houde, a professional motocross racer, the article stated that she is “fearless … through broken bones, disappointments and a lot of hard work, she maintains her focus … and looks lovely doing it!”

It was removed some time after Oct. 21, replaced with a toned-down re-write that didn’t refer to the women’s physical appearances.

Kim Christian, whose teenage daughter showed her the original article, said she finds it offensive that the government would participate in the use of “sexual innuendo” to promote tourism.

“All of this is very inappropriate for a government agency,” she said.

Paul Pepe, chair of Tourism Northern Ontario, said the story was pulled quickly and replaced with a “sanitized” version, once it was brought to the attention of the website’s administrators.

“The story, I think, was well-intentioned in terms of promoting the Parry Sound visitor experiences, but certainly the way it was crafted was not appropriate,” said Pepe.

“This is one that perhaps wasn’t proofread as it should be.”

Following the conclusion of the publicity tour on Monday, Cline posted on Facebook that “the past week in Ontario Canada has been one of the best experiences of my life,” and thanked Mahon and Houde for “proving that women can do what the guys can yet still be pretty in the process.”

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